Monthly Archives: April 2011

I was visited by my first hummingbird of the season yesterday, so I decided to head out into the garden on a rainy Easter Sunday morning to see what he/she might be finding to feed upon. Here’s what I found blooming–plus a couple of my favorite hostas thrown in for fun! Had to include the climbing hydrangea, though it hasn’t

(This article was first published in The Gateway Gardener April 2006 issue.) By Barbara Perry Lawton Perennial vines offer good solutions for many landscape design challenges. They can screen for privacy and they can hide an unsightly utility area. Vines can serve as attractive “walls” to separate different sections of your garden. When grown on an arbor, they can create

(This article was first published in The Gateway Gardener April 2006 issue.) Text and photos by Chris Kelley Close your eyes and make a wish. A wish for beautiful foliage, superb architecture, and WOW appeal. If your wish comes true, you’ll be growing elephant ears, those denizens of steamy tropical and subtropical climates named Alocasia, Colocasia and Xanthosoma. We’re talking

(This article was first published in The Gateway Gardener April 2009 issue.) By Diane Brueckman April 15th will soon be here and you’ll be uncovering your roses. Pruning is an essential part of having good-looking, productive plants. Removing dead and diseased wood not only shapes up your plant, but gives you more and bigger blooms. Pruning is a great way

(This article was first published in The Gateway Gardener April 2009 issue.) Serving Washingtonians “From Cradle to Grave” Since 1951 The Hillermann family doesn’t have quite as long of a history in horticulture as some of the other local green-industry families we’ve featured in this series, but in just two generations, they have build Hillermann Nursery & Florist into one

(This article was first published in The Gateway Gardener April 2010 issue) By Steffie Littlefield Have you noticed the flowers are smaller on some of your perennials? Or does a plant or two just look like a wad of stems and foliage all tangled up or does it have a void spot in the middle like a monk’s bald spot?

What a beautiful weekend day! (Too bad I’m inside working on taxes.) Things continue to progress in The Gateway Gardener garden, with the spring ephemerals like sessile bellwort and Virginia bluebell peaking, along with other spring perennials and flowering trees and shrubs. Here’s what was in bloom today (not including things we’ve already covered in previous photo galleries that are